Portable unloader



pr 3, 1935 c. L. DUIFF 1,999,448

PORTABLE UNLOADER Filed March 5, 1931 VENTOR Char/e5 L. Duff a conveyor frame which the trap Vof a car and Whi Patented Apr. 30,

This invention relates PORTABLE UNLOADER Charles L. Duff,

J eirey Columbus, Ohio, Manufacturing Comp Ohio, a corporation of Ohio 1931, serial No. 519,851 (C1. 28o-44) Application March 3,

4 Claims.

devices for conveyors, it being here shown as applied to a conveyor adapted for the unloading of cars, which typ e of conveyor is characterized by may be inserted beneath ch will withdraw, by

the usual or any desired conveyor chain, the contents dum ped upon it, there being provided as a part of the mechanism an frame, up which the material the chain to an elevation whic be delivered to the truck for inclined conveyor Will be carried by h will permit it to transportation.

The invention has to do particularly with novel means for raising and frame relative to the suppor it is carried and transpo In the drawing is disclosed on the invention, but it will disclosure is illustrative and in tive, as equivalent mecha adopted for those shown,

range of the invention.k

In the drawing:- Figure 1 is a view in sid having my invention app Figure 2 is a view in b of the machine to illustrate ering mechanism.

lowering the conveyor ting wheels on which rted.

e embodiment of derstood that the no sense restricxpedients may be and still be within the be un nical e e elevation of a machine lied thereto.

ottom plan of a portion the raising and low- Figure 3 isa View in longitudinal section th the raising and lowering eration.

rough a portion of the machine to illustrate mechanism and its op- Referring to the drawing by numbers, like numbers indicating like parts in th e several views, lll

indicates the frame of the machine, which may be of any suitable constructi on, there being provided at the rear oi the machine, mounted upon a suitable super-structure, any prime motor Il, from the shaft of which motor,

driving connections,

made up of drive belts or chainsV l2 and suitable pulleys or sprockets i3,

carry the power to a sprocket lf3, which, in turn, drives, through the sprocket l5, the head shaft of the conveyor for actuating the conveyor chain.

The conveyor chain i6, which suitable type, extends fr may be of any om the horizontal portion of the frame lil, where it passes over any suitable foot shaft il, adju end of the frame it, rea

clined bottom of the con may be of any suitable The one here shown, as

comprises the endless ch able guideways i9 in th stably mounted at the Wardly and up the inveyor trough i8, which or desired construction. illustrated in Figure 3, ain i6, traversing suite sides of the conveyor raising and lowering` frame, the upper run the false bottom or apron 2U,

of the c assignor to The any, Columbus,

of the chain travelling over While the lower run hain passes on its return flight along suitable guides 2l.

With

the frame lil, with this construction, the forward end of its conveyor, will be thrust beneath the car, the traps opened, and the material which flows from ried rearwardly, when power the car will then be car is applied, by the conveyor chain I6, up the inclined trough, and

delivered at the rear end of any suitable receptacle or carrier.

It is necessary or desirablethat the conveyor be arranged for ready transportation, and this is aCCOmD lished by providing a wheeled axle 22, at

each end of which are journaled the supporting Wheels will be 23. The axle is placed so that the load evenly distributed and the machine kept at a reasonable balance for operation and transportation.

It is necessary, to of the machine, th `ing` and lowering a satisfactory manipulation at provision be made for raisit so as to accommodate it to the diierent conditions under which it is to be used, at the same time preserving the integrity of the conveying and avoiding,

mechanism and the driving parts so far as possible, the necessity of making laborious and slow adjustments for elevating and lowering the machine.

This

tion, by provid able plates and pends from the suitably secured lli, as shown in is provi ably flanged, as sho is accomplished, according to my inveng a frame, 24, made up of suitcross bars, which frame 24 deinclined Vtrough member and is to the horizontal frame member Figures l and 3. The frame 24 ded on each side with open ways 25, suitwn in Figures 2 and 3, to give a bearing surface for an appreciable extent, and

in these open ways the axle 22 slides, so that the axle and its wheels may be adjusted, as shown in Figure 3, to a vari raiser and lower the frame of the to the supporting axle.

sent construction cular in cross section and sides upon the flanged the pre ety of positions, so as to machine relative It will be seen that in the axle 22 is non-cirtalres its bearing on two Ways 25, so that it can move up and down the ways without turning, and

the parts will be maint ained in relatively firm relation.

In order to brin g about the shifting of the frame and the axle relative to one another, there is provided, as here shown, a very simple and efficient mechanism, comprising the rope or cable 26, the

ends of tothe a oney end loop of which is secured directly xle, it being here shown as passing through CFI apertures in the axle 22 and having its adjacent ends or its loop fastened so that it will be held against movement or slip under strain. From the axles, the bight of the cable 26 passes over sheaves 2l, carried by a shaft 28, journaled in the frame of the machine below the axle, and thence the bight of the cable passes to, and is wound around, a shaft 2S, conveniently mounted on the frame work of the machine. With this arrangement, it will be seen that as the shaft 2S is turned in the direction to wind the rope 2%, it will exert a raising pull upon the sheaves 21 and tend to elevate the machine frame relative to the fixed point, namely, the axle 22 supported by the wheels, to which the ends of the rope are secured.'

Rotation of the shaft 29 in the opposite direction will permit the frame to slide downwardly relative to the shaft until it is brought to its extreme lower position or any intermediate elevation which may be desired.

When the cable has been wound upon the shaft 29 to the extent of bringing the axle into contact with the upper edges of the side rails lli, it will be seen that the wheels 23 will project the greatest degree below the conveyor frame to support the same at its highest elevation. When the axle is disposed at the opposite end of its guide slots 25, it will engage the underside of the inclined conveyor trough, so that it will be obvious that the machine in eiiect, equipped with stops for limiting the extent of sliding movement of the axle in either direction.

As a convenient means of rotating the shaft 29, and, furthermore, to lock it in any position of adjustment, there is preferably provided the worm wheel 3Q on the end of the shaft 29, adjacent which is a bracket 3 I in which is mounted a worm 32, carried by a crank shaft 33 xed to the side of the inclined frame I8.`

With this arrangement the operator of the machine can quickly elevate and lower the machine relative to the supporting axle 22 and adapt the conveyor proper to varying conditions which may be encountered.

It is to be understood that various changes in the arrangement and shape of the various parts may be resorted to without departing from the scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

l. In conveyor mechanism comprising a portable conveyor frame having a horizontal forward portion and an upwardly and rearwardly inclined rear portion, the combination of means beneath said rear portion providing transversely spaced parallel slots inclined upwardly and rearwardly, a wheeled axle in said slots, the frame being movable upwardly and downwardly relative to said axle with the latter guided in said slots, said slots being located in the vicinity of the balancing center of the mechanism as a whole and causing a forward overbalancing eiect of the mechanism as the frame moves downwardly relative to the axle, and means for elevating the frame relative to said axle.

2. In conveyor mechanism comprising a portable conveyor frame having a horizontal forward portion and an upwardly and rearwardly inclined rear portion, the combination of means beneath said rear portion providing transversely spaced parallel slots inclined upwardly and rearwardly, a wheeled axle in said slots, said axle having flattened portions slidably and non-rotatably guided in said slots, the frame being movable upwardly and downwardly relative to said axle with the latter guided in said slots, said slots being located in the vicinity of the balancing center of the mechanism as a whole and causing a forward overbalancing effect of the mechanism as the frame moves downwardly relative to the axle, and means for elevating the frame relative to said axle.

3. In conveyor mechanism comprising a portable conveyor rame having a horizontal forward' portion and an upwardly and rearwardly inclined rear portion, the combination of means beneath said rear portion providing transversely spaced parallel slots inclined upwardly and rearwardly, a wheeled axle in said slots, the frame being movable upwardly and downwardly relative to said axle with the latter guided in said slots, said slots being located in the vicinity of the balancing center of the mechanism as a whole and causing a forward overbalancing effect of the mechanism as the frame moves downwardly relative to the axle, means for elevating the frame relative to said axle comprising a lockable winding shaft journaled in connection with said frame parallel to and to the rear of said axle, and flexible means windable on said shaft and trained downwardly therefrom and upwardly to said axle at substan-V tially the same inclination as and secured to the axle at longitudinally spaced points thereon.

4. In conveyor mechanism comprising a portable conveyor frame having a horizontal forward portion and an upwardly and rearwardly inclined rear portion, the combination of means beneath said rear portion providing transversely spaced parallel slots inclined upwardly and rearwardly, a wheeled axle in said slots, said axle having flattened portions slidably and'non-rotatably guided in said slots, the frame being movable upwardly and downwardly relative to said axle with the latter guided in said. slots, said slots being located in the vicinity of the balancing center of the mechanism as a whole and causing aforward overbalancing effect of the mechanism as the frame moves downwardly relative to the axle, means for elevating the frame relative to said axle comprising a lockable winding shaft in connection with said frame parallel to and to the rear of said axle, and flexible means windable on said shaft and trained downwardly therefrom and upwardly to said axle at substan-` tially the same inclinationas that of the slots and secured to the axle at longitudinally spaced points thereon.

CHARLES L. DUFF.

that of the slotsv 

